Half Black Soul (12 page)

I didn't get a chance to ask, because the front door of the house opened and Kayden and Akira joined us on the porch. Olivia's night bag was clutched in Kayden's hand. Akira had changed into a pair of gray sweatpants and a gray pullover sweatshirt. I smiled down at her. I'd thought that all the clothes made for little girls her age were either pink or purple, but this was the third outfit I'd seen her in and it didn't have a lick of color. Even her little tennis shoes were black with white trim. It was one of the small things that made me adore her so fiercely. As soon as I'd set eyes on her dark wavy hair, serious expression, and careless fashion choices, she'd reminded me of a little me. And, I was glad to see her in clothes that weren't splattered with blood.

The engine stayed running, but the headlights on the car shut off and left bright spots stuck behind my eyes. The driver's door opened, and Olivia's nephew hopped out. I surveyed him in the same way I do every new person I meet. He wasn't built as large as Kayden, or even Jackson or Tommy, but he wasn't really a small guy either. He looked probably a couple years older than me; twenty or so. His hair was the same dark brown as Akira's and wavy like hers as well. He wore thick, black-rimmed glasses, and had a face that was decidedly interesting. He wasn't ugly, not handsome either, but somehow strangely appealing. He had one of those faces that just doesn't make sense, and yet somehow does. He wore a blood red dress shirt with both sleeves rolled up a quarter of the way, a loosened black tie, and black suit pants with shiny black shoes.

He held a black umbrella over his head and briskly made his way to over to us on the crowded porch. Akira ran up and gave him a hug. He asked her if she was okay, and she nodded. Olivia gave him a hug as well and assured him that she was fine too. With those concerns appeased, he stepped back and gave Kayden a once over. An unintentionally obvious disinterested look passed over his face. His eyes fell on me next, and stayed put.

I guess it is just in my nature that I become mildly aggravated when strangers stare at me. I suppose I see it as some sort of silent challenge, and whoever averts their eyes first, loses. Most people have trouble holding my gaze, and look away quickly, as if they are afraid of what lies behind them. Olivia's nephew had no such issues. He didn't look at me like another predator would, though. He stared into my eyes as if examining a coded work of art. It was a shameless examination, and I instantly labeled him in my head as strange .

He reinforced this with his odd greeting. Hi, he said in a soft monotone.

I know that my thoughts were written on my face. I'm pretty good at concealing my feelings most of the time, in fact, people have told me that I always look pissed off or mean , and I never even realize it. It's just the way I look. But, when it comes to my thoughts about people, it's always obvious what is going on in my head. So, when Olivia's nephew skipped over Kayden's presence and then offered just Hi to me, instead of a handshake or an introduction, my eyebrows drew together and lifted slightly. Uh, hi, I returned, and I didn't mean to sound snotty. He was just strange. And that's saying something from a girl who is the only one of her kind.

Sun Warrior, he said quietly, as if confirming this to himself.

I raised an eyebrow and replied, Searcher.

He raised one dark brow above the thick rim of his glasses in return. An almost smile touched his lips, and he gave a nearly imperceptible nod. Eighteen? he asked.

I shifted my stance, and behind me, I heard Kayden chuckle quietly. This guy wasn't just strange, he was weird. Who asked that sort of thing, and did he always speak in one word sentences when he met someone new? But, he had a way about him that made you sort of adapt to his manner, and my returned answer, which I normally wouldn't have even bothered with, followed his lead. Almost, I replied.

He seemed to mull this information over for a moment. Then he nodded once, lowered his head in a bow, and said, Pleasure.

Uh, same, I returned, feeling stupid for some stupid reason.

He turned back to Olivia. Ready? he asked.

The old woman shook her head and smiled. Alexa, this is my nephew, Gabriel. She shot a look at him. Gabriel, this is Alexa. And, yes, we're ready. Would you mind getting Akira into her seatbelt while I say goodbye to our friends?

He nodded once and held his hand out to Akira, but she ran over to me first. I scooped her up in my arms, ignoring the complaints of my battered body, and hugged her tight. My heart sunk down to my shoes when she whispered, I love you, Alexa.

I ran my hand over her hair and sent a silent thank you up to whoever was listening for allowing me to get to her in time tonight. I still felt terrible because it had been my fault, but I wouldn't have been able to stand myself if something would have happened to her. The reality of this smacked me full-on in the gut as I hugged her goodbye. I love you too, I told her, because I very much did.

Akira hugged Kayden next, and then followed Gabriel, who was still shamelessly studying my face, back to the car. Olivia hugged Kayden and me as well, and I noticed that she whispered something to him as she did so. He nodded in response, and she took her overnight bag from his hand and patted his cheek. When she got to Gabriel's car, she opened the passenger side door and braced an arm on top of it. Alexa, she called back. I inclined my head. Don't worry about the window, she said, and got into the car.

I reached into my pocket and pulled two hundred dollar bills out of a plastic bag. I slid them under the front door of the house and turned to Kayden. Let's go, I said.

He nodded. Let s.

Alexa

When we got into Tommy's Mercedes, I let Kayden drive again. I was exhausted and didn't feel like doing anything but taking a shower and going to sleep. Kayden didn't even bother to ask me where to go. He just searched for the nearest hotel on the GPS and started off. I put up no argument. I'd had enough excitement for one night. I immediately sought out the box of cigarettes in the center console. Upon opening it, I found that I only had three left. They wouldn't last me long. But I was tired enough that purchasing more would have to wait until morning. My eyelids were drooping.

I had to lean over to Kayden's side of the car to retrieve the lighter I'd thrown onto the dashboard earlier. Being so close to him made my stomach tingle and my jaw clench, so I snatched the lighter quickly and sat back in my seat. I ran my tongue over my lips and placed the cigarette between them. When I cracked the window open a bit the whistle and whine of the wind relaxed me, but my body tensed up when I raised my hand and got a look at the lighter clutched between my fingers.

I turned it over on its opposite side. When I'd found the lighter a few months ago it had been white with a red Kansas City Chiefs arrowhead logo on both sides of it. The arrowheads had been fading when I found it, but by now the symbols were completely rubbed off. Now the lighter was just white. Without thought or pause, I flipped it out of the open window.

I cursed myself when I realized that I hadn't lit my cigarette. Shit.

Kayden looked over at me. What? he asked.

I began digging through the compartments in search of another flame-producing object. Threw the lighter out the window, I answered.

Good idea.

It was white, I snapped.

Oooo.

I laughed out loud at this, and a small smile found Kayden's lips as I did so. He replaced it with his usual serious expression a moment later. And, soon my smile fell from my lips as well. I resumed my frantic search for something with which to light my cigarette. A deep reach underneath my seat rewarded me with a book of matches. This was Tommy's car, and he was a smoker, so I'd figured there had to be something in here somewhere.

But the search had taken me a full fifteen minutes before I found the matches, so we were already pulling into the parking lot of a small hotel when I finally got to pull the first wonderful, poisonous cloud of smoke into my lungs.

Kayden parked the car in a semi-secluded area of the lot and turned to me. Did Tommy leave any of his clothes in here? he asked.

I shrugged. There might be some in the trunk. I don't think I saw any in the backseat.

He popped the truck and hopped out of the car. When he returned he held a gray sweatshirt in his hands. I recognized it as the one Tommy wore when we warmed up in our training classes at the Brocken school. Kayden pulled his ruined black t-shirt over his head and balled it up. He shoved his arms into the sleeves of Tommy's sweatshirt and paused before pulling it over his head.

I couldn't help but stare at him. I didn't even care that he knew I was staring at him. His body was not something that could be ignored. I didn't understand how someone got to be so strong looking. The muscles in his stomach and chest were statue worthy. His skin was unblemished and smooth except for the various scars that were lucky enough to live there. I am not a weak person, in fact, I possess great strength myself, but while my body was defined and muscular, Kayden's body displayed his power in a way that mine never could. I was a small-framed girl naturally, with soft shoulders, small hands and healthy curves. Kayden was huge in comparison to me, and nothing about him was soft or feminine. So, I guess it just amazed me that somehow he still managed to be completely beautiful.

At last he pulled the sweatshirt over his head, and I turned my face innocently toward the windshield. I didn't look over at him when he opened the door and stepped out of the car, but I could hear the invisible smile in his voice when he told me to Wait here .

I finished my cigarette by the time Kayden got back. He pulled the car around to the north side of the hotel where I assumed our room was located. I breathed a silent sigh of relief when I saw that the room held two queen-sized beds. I'd already compromised my relationship with Jackson enough on this trip. I would have to tell him about the kiss between Kayden and me when I got back. Jackson was my best friend, and had been at a time when no one was interested in me. He'd saved my life more than once, and most of all, I truly cared for him. At the very least he deserved honesty from me.

It occurred to me for the first time that Jackson may very well break up with me when he found out what I'd done. The thought of this made me cringe a little inside. What if he stopped talking to me altogether? That thought was unfathomable. A life without Jackson? No. Thank. You. Just thinking about it made me want another cigarette, so I pushed it out of my head. I only had two smokes left at the moment, and much more immediate issues to deal with than enlightening Jackson to my recent behavior.

The room we were in was modest and clean, with the usual hotel furnishings. A few generic paintings by unknown artists hung on the off-white walls and the two chairs and bedding were tan-colored. A medium-sized flat-screen television hung on the wall in front of the two beds and the bathroom was located on the opposite side of the entrance to the room. I tossed my backpack on the nightstand and began to rummage through it for a fresh pair of clothes. I pulled out an oversized t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants. Kayden grabbed the T.V. remote from the top of the television, plopped down in one of the chairs, and turned it on. I continued digging through my bag for my toothbrush, toothpaste and my hairbrush.

Behind me, the sound of the television roared to life. Kayden flipped through channels and stopped on a station that was giving the local news. The weather forecast was calling for more rain, and I rolled my eyes without looking over at the screen. Of course it was going to keep raining. Why wouldn't it?

The forecast concluded and the reporter launched into another story. My back went ramrod still and my hand clutched my toothbrush so tightly that the plastic gave way a little in my grip. My eyes found the television screen, and I couldn't pull them away.

&.Pennsylvania State Police found the body of a man in the parking lot of the Silver Dollar diner located in the town of Somerset after receiving a frantic call from a worker who was taking out the trash. The worker reported finding the body lying face-down near the edge of the parking lot. The victim was forty-three year old Stuart Billings. He was found with a knife wound in his throat and loss of blood was established as the cause of death. Police have found Billings DNA to be linked to several unsolved murders of young girls in the nearby areas. As of right now the police have no suspects for the homicide of Billings &.

My heart had stopped dead in my chest and my body felt frozen in place. Stuart Billings. He had a name. Of course he did. Everyone has a name. I kept replaying the information, not truly able to comprehend. I seemed to be instantly broken-minded, and the meanings of the words were as lost to me as a foreign language. But they ran over and over nonetheless; Stuart Billings no suspects Stuart Billings loss of blood cause of death Stuart Billings Victim

My monster's voice cut in, flat cold and uncaring: You heard what they said. He was linked to several murders of young girls. He would have killed us. He deserved it.

I didn't have the mind to argue with its stupid opinion. My eyes fell to the tan carpet at my feet. I could tell that Kayden was watching me, but I couldn't find it in me to look over at him. I walked stiffly over to the bathroom and opened the door. I shut it behind me and stripped out of my clothes, leaving them in a bloody wet heap on the floor. I stepped into the shower stall without looking in the mirror over the sink. Standing under the faucet, I turned the knob, and ice cold water rained down over me. I didn't shiver. Turning the knob all the way over to the red followed the freezing water with burning hot. I left it there. I could stand it, and it seemed somehow appropriate.